Liberal Arts

Liberal Arts

The fifteenth annual "An Evening of Pennsylvania Poets: Readings in Celebration of the Public Poetry Project" will be held at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 26, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, on Penn State's campus, and will be followed by a book sale and poster signing.

Former NFL player Don McPherson will present "You Throw Like a Girl," a talk on nurturing positive language and understanding masculine identity, at 6:30 p.m. March 2 in Freeman Auditorium in the HUB-Robeson Center.

For some youngsters, a toy spider is frightening. For others, it’s simply a funny-looking plaything. Why some kids squeal with delight and others with trepidation is what Koraly Perez-Edgar, a researcher in Penn State’s Department of Psychology, is hoping to tap into. Her research team is working with a German technology firm to build an eye-tracking visor that will capture eye gaze information that could lead to a better understanding of anxiety disorders in children.

Children of undocumented Mexican immigrants have a significantly higher risk of behavior problems than their co-ethnic counterparts with documented or naturalized citizen mothers, according to a team of sociologists.

Discussing the relationship between science and faith, rather than avoiding the discussion, may better prepare future high school biology teachers for anticipating questions about evolution, according to Penn State political scientists.

The Penn State Speech & Debate Society recently hosted the Pennsylvania Forensics Association (PFA) state tournament for the first time. Students from universities throughout Pennsylvania competed at the annual event. Behind the team’s collective efforts, Penn State placed second overall in the President's Sweepstakes with the University of Pennsylvania placing first. According to PFA records, this is the first time in decades that Penn State has received any award at the state tournament.

Penn State’s College of the Liberal Arts recently inducted 123 students as Paterno Fellows and Schreyer Scholars, as part of an innovative landmark program offered jointly by the College and the Schreyer Honors College. In addition, the winners of the second annual Collegiate Laws of Life Essay Contest were recognized at the ceremony.

Elizabeth Kadetsky, assistant professor of English at Penn State, will read at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, in the Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library. The free, public event is part of the Mary E. Rolling Reading Series.

The Center for American Political Responsiveness will present a public lecture by Martin Gilens, professor of politics at Princeton University, on “Economic Inequality and Political Power in America,” at 4 p.m. on Feb. 27 in the Foster Auditorium in 102 Paterno Library.

Archaeologists need to study larger areas of land and link those studies to measurable environmental, societal and demographic changes to understand variations in prehistoric societies, according to Penn State anthropologists. The large areas are necessary to say anything meaningful about human behavioral response to social and environmental events.

The McCourtney Institute for Democracy Media and Deliberation Series Presents "Conservative Advocacy for the 21st Century" with guest speakers Brett Jacobson and Ian Spencer, of Red Edge, a digital-advocacy group for conservative causes. Their talk will start at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library.

Cheryl Glenn, Liberal Arts Research Professor of English and Women's Studies, recently received an honorary doctorate from Örebro University, Sweden, for her contributions to the humanities, specifically to the study of gender and rhetoric.